If you know me personally, you would know that I have a love for coffee but I am not that great with dairy products. So to satisfy my coffee cravings without making me run to the toilet, I decided to make some mocha cupcakes since I couldn't really find a coffee cupcakes recipe that appealed to me.

I found the recipe on taste.com.au and can be found here.

Since I did not make the syrup, I can only comment on the actual cupcake batter. The cupcake itself is really nice and moist and has that bitter taste, which is expected. However, I found that the coffee flavour wasn't as strong as I would like so next time I make it, I would definitely put in maybe a half to a full tablespoon extra of instant coffee powder.

This adventure also allowed me to try piping icing for the first time. It wasn't an utter failure but it also wasn't the best but nobody perfects it on the right try. I think I will go and try a bigger piping attachment next time since I used a small attachment bought from Daiso.

Along with the redecorating bug, I have also gotten the baking bug too. Obviously, that means that I will document said baking adventures and post each one on my blog.



Early last week, one of my close friends had her 21st party and I told her that I would bake her cake. With some direction from what she liked, I baked the cake and I am somewhat proud of what I was able to achieve, especially since it was my first time using fondant and icing a cake. Who knows, maybe this will signal my entry into the cake decorating world LOL (trust me, it doesn't).

Vanilla Bean Sponge Cake:

White Chocolate Buttercream:

Icing the cake:

Towards the end of my uni semester that just passed, I got the redecorating bug for my room. That, consequently, led to my trip to IKEA to try and bring some of my ideas to life. However, looking back I didn't get everything that would bring my image to life but then again, I still have another 3 weeks of break.

So, this is my IKEA haul.

Early 2014 marked a lot of travelling for me. Once I got back from Gold Coast, my cousins from Adelaide made a visit so we decided to go on a quick road trip to Newcastle.

I had been there previously with my dad and siblings for a daytrip and it was nice to go there for an extended stay of 4 days and 3 nights. We went to the beach, Newcastle Art Gallery, the public library (which was surprisingly really good), Fort Scratchley, ate at some really nice cafes, did some late night fishing and just generally explored the area.

One of our favourite things to do in Newcastle was go to the baths where the ocean water comes into a pool area so that you can swim in a confined area. It's really cool since you get the waves crashing into the pool and the ocean water without the risk of drowning or rips. This time around we discovered the 'Bogey Hole' which is like the baths but it was somewhat naturally made due to the cliffs surrounding it. The water is so nice and the feel of algae under your feet is a really cool feeling. We found out from some locals that once the sun sets, it becomes a really popular skinny dipping spot since it's never closed like the baths.

Overall, it's a great area to explore and highly recommended if you want a weekend getaway from the hustle and bustle of Sydney.

I had my first encounter with high tea last February with a visit to Tea Salon located in Pitt St Westfields.

Tea Salon offers the traditional high tea experience but it also offers you an option to just order food and tea separately and we opted for the latter. We chose to have a selection of sandwiches, a side of fries, scones, a salmon salad that included avocado and capers and a pot of tea (I forgot what type of tea we had ... )

The decor of the open restaurant was really quite nice. It wasn't overly girly but it had hints of femininity and freshness throughout the restaurant. I found the middle service table to be quite nice to look at especially with the cupcake stand with mini champagne bottles.

The service was really nice with the wait staff giving off a friendly and warm vibe. They kept checking in with us and making sure that everything was to our liking without being overbearing. I really liked the sandwiches and fries but I don't think I would order the salmon salad again. It was a large serving, which was nice, but it sort of overwhelmed all of us. We really struggled to finish it and there was 3 of us.

Another downside that I found was that the table was quite small for us. It may have been better if we were seated at a 4 person table but the table struggled to hold all of our food and we felt quite cramped with the space.

Overall, it was a nice experience and I would go back but maybe ask for a bigger table.

In the first week of February, myself and a group of close friends planned to go to Gold Coast.


We rented a beach house off "Stayz". I had booked off this website previously when I make a trip to Melbourne after I finished HSC. What I like about the site is that it has a comprehensive list of accommodations, you can chat to the home owners, check out other reviews and photos so you know what you are renting out.

Our week was pretty much comprised of visiting Surfers Paradise, going to theme parks, hanging out with one another, going to the beach that was one street away, playing board games (and getting called a cheater way too many times) and getting addicted to "Come Dine With Me". It was a week filled with friends and some very memorable memories. For me, it was a great week to have with my friends since I hadn't seen them for 5 weeks due to my overseas trip.